Who’s on the Move? Winners and Losers of the 2019 NHL Trade Deadline
February 26, 2019The 2018-19 NHL season is quickly approaching the month of March, meaning we are now just over a month away from the start of this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Many teams continue to fight for a playoff berth or home-ice advantage and those who qualify for this year’s dance hope to play deep into the spring with aspirations for a Stanley Cup victory.
With the trade deadline behind us, we take a look at which teams are the winners and losers from this year’s deadline day and the days leading up to it:
Winner – Nashville Predators
GM David Poile hasn’t been one to shy away from pulling the trigger to make his team better – evidenced by his trades to acquire centers Ryan Johansen and Kyle Turris and defenseman PK Subban in recent years – and Poile shook up his roster not once, but twice this year at the deadline.
Poile might have felt pressured to make a move with competition in the Western Conference loading up on talent, as he would trade forward Ryan Hartman and a conditional fourth-round pick in 2020 to Philadelphia for forward Wayne Simmonds; along with forward Kevin Fiala to Minnesota for center Mikael Granlund.
Simmonds’ leadership and playoff experience could give a boost to the 2017 Stanley Cup finalists, as the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent has averaged .50 points-per-game with 21 points in 42 playoff games throughout his career. This season, Simmonds has just 16 goals and 11 assists in 62 games, but is on pace for his sixth consecutive season of at least 20 goals. Of his 16 goals this season, five have come on the man-advantage for Philadelphia, which already ties him with Filip Forsberg for the team lead on Nashville. His presence in front of the net could give a boost to a Predators power play that ranks last in the entire league.
Embed from Getty ImagesIn Granlund, the Predators become one of the league’s deeper teams down the middle with Granlund, Johansen, Turris, Nick Bonino and recently-acquired Brian Boyle. The 27-year-old center is under contract for one more season after this year at $5.75 million and his playmaking abilities should assist Nashville’s top-nine forward group. In 63 games this season, Granlund has 15 goals and 34 assists totaling 49 points, 18 of which have come on the power play.
From Nashville’s perspective, Granlund can play top-6 right wing and aid a 31st-ranked power play
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) February 25, 2019
From Minnesota’s perspective, Fenton, who announced the Fiala draft pick, gets a guy he loves, a 22 yo speedster whom he believes can be a 30-goal scorer at least.
The extra year on Granlund’s contract gives GM David Poile one less player to worry about this summer compared to former first-round pick Kevin Fiala – now a member of the Minnesota Wild – who was set to be a restricted free agent in July.
Loser – Pittsburgh Penguins
General manager Jim Rutherford said earlier this month he was “trying to stay away” from trading this year’s first-round draft pick, something he’s done often in past years to compete for a Stanley Cup. Rutherford kept his word, opting to keep the draft and make two depth trades at the deadline for defensemen Chris Wideman and Erik Gudbranson.
The Penguins had acquired forwards Jared McCann and Nick Bjugstad earlier in the month, sending two players and three draft picks to the Panthers in exchange for the forwards, leaving the team with five draft picks this June, but just the first-round pick in the first three rounds.
The deadline move that affects the NHL roster is the one for Gudbranson, in which Pittsburgh sent winger Tanner Pearson – who they had acquired from Los Angeles back in November – to Vancouver for the defenseman.
Embed from Getty ImagesIn Gudbranson, the Penguins get a 6-foot-5-inch defenseman who is under contract at $4 million per season until 2021. The problem with that? Gudbranson isn’t exactly the type of defenseman that fits Pittsburgh’s style of play.
The Penguins have been the type of team to play up-tempo hockey, often building its lineups with speed and skill in the form of stars such as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel and Kris Letang. The Penguins have also been a team that would play a possession game, with a 5-on-5 CF% above 50 percent each season since 2016 – with the exception of this year, as they currently rank 19th in the league at 49.24 percent but ninth in high-danger chances, recording a 52.11 percent HDCF%.
Gudbranson’s never been known as a defenseman to drive play since he was drafted third overall by Florida in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, recording a CF% above 50 percent just once over his seven-plus year career. The Penguins might’ve needed depth on the blue line following injuries to Brian Dumoulin and Kris Letang during the Stadium Series game against Philadelphia, but Gudbranson wasn’t the best choice to fill in.
Erik Gudbranson (to Penguins, ahahaha) is a terrible, truly, truly terrible defender. Just, like, so bad. pic.twitter.com/iy0AIesLxc
— Micah Blake McCurdy (@IneffectiveMath) February 25, 2019
One positive to the trade, however, is that Gudbranson can bring a toughness element to a team that had been previously lacking it. With players like Tom Wilson on a rival team in the Washington Capitals, Gudbranson will be counted on to stick up for Pittsburgh’s star players for the next two seasons.
The #Penguins just received D Erik Gudbranson in a trade — and he has a bit of a history with… TOM WILSON.
— DK Pittsburgh Sports (@DKPghSports) February 25, 2019
📹 via @hockeyfights
Our coverage: https://t.co/jlPOWlR2Vd pic.twitter.com/ZARTHlkXUu
Winner – Columbus Blue Jackets
Jarmo Kekäläinen was easily the busiest general manager during this year’s trade season, making two trades on deadline day and two more just days ahead of the Feb. 25 deadline.
The biggest splash for the Blue Jackets’ GM came three days before the deadline, when he sent two prospects and two draft picks to the Ottawa Senators for star center Matt Duchene. Duchene – who will be an unrestricted free agent this summer – is currently on pace to break his career-high 70 points he scored in 2014 with Colorado, as he has already recorded 60 points in 52 games, including two in two games with his new team.
Embed from Getty ImagesDuchene spent 118 games in Ottawa after being acquired from Colorado in 2017 in a three-team trade including the Nashville Predators. He’s now on his third team in two years as Columbus hopes to win its first playoff series (and more) in franchise history.
Kekäläinen followed that trade up by moving two picks and often-scratched forward Anthony Duclair to Ottawa for Duchene’s teammate, Ryan Dzingel. Another highly-sought forward, Kekäläinen clearly wasted no time improving his roster, making both trades before the deadline.
Another forward rental, Dzingel already set a new career-high in scoring with 44 points in 57 games, three more points than he had last year. He’s also one goal off his 2018 total of 23, with plenty of time to exceed that number.
The Blue Jackets wouldn’t only add to the team’s group of forwards, choosing to add depth to its defense and goaltending positions as well. Kekäläinen started deadline day early, sending a fifth-round pick in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft to New Jersey for goalie Keith Kinkaid, who will likely serve as the emergency third goalie behind starter Sergei Bobrovsky and backup Joonas Korpisalo. With NHL rosters expanding on Feb. 25, Kekäläinen found it necessary to add a third goalie to his team, giving the Blue Jackets some of the best depth between the pipes across the league.
Embed from Getty ImagesKekäläinen would follow that trade up with a move for a defenseman, acquiring veteran Adam McQuaid from the New York Rangers in exchange for recently-acquired prospect Julius Bergman and two 2019 draft picks.
If there is one message Kekäläinen is trying to send to his club, soon-to-be free agent Artemi Panarin, and the city of Columbus it’s that he’s in it to win it, with the Blue Jackets going all-in this year in hopes of a deep playoff run.
Loser – Columbus Blue Jackets
You’re probably already asking yourself, “how could the Blue Jackets be losers if you just called them one of the winners?” and the answer to that is simple: the team’s questionable future.
Stated above, GM Jarmo Kekäläinen is doing everything in his power to build a winning team, adding pieces at every position to prepare for what he hopes will be a deep playoff run. But what would happen if the team fails to advance past the first round?
Embed from Getty ImagesKekäläinen will likely have a difficult time convincing star forward Artemi Panarin to re-sign with the Blue Jackets if the team fails to make some noise in this year’s playoffs, with the same going for other notable free agents in forwards Matt Duchene, Ryan Dzingel and starting goalie Sergei Bobrovsky.
Without the team’s star players, Kekäläinen will have plenty of cap space to work with, with zero goalies under contract for next season and young defenseman Zach Werenski set to become a restricted free agent.
However, Kekäläinen didn’t give himself much ability to restock his farm system for the future, having just two draft picks in this year’s draft – a third and seventh round pick (from Calgary).
If Kekäläinen can convince at least one of his unrestricted free agents to sign long-term with Columbus, the team might not need to worry as much about what the future holds.
Winner – Boston Bruins
General manager Don Sweeney’s Bruins have been sitting around the middle of the league when it comes to scoring goals this season, ranking 15th in goals for with 185 this season, while having the league’s second-best power play. Boston ranks 26th in the league with just 109 goals scored at 5-on-5 this season, but Sweeney’s additions this season should help fix his team’s offensive struggles.
Embed from Getty ImagesFirst, the fourth-year general manager acquired forward Charlie Coyle from the Minnesota Wild, a native of the Boston-area from Weymouth, MA. Coyle is having a bit of a down year offensively, with just 10 goals and 28 points in 60 games this season, but is just two years removed from a career-best 56 point year with Minnesota in 2017 and the hometown Bruins are hoping he can find that offensive touch late in the season.
Embed from Getty ImagesThen, Sweeney traded with New Jersey for another top-nine forward in Marcus Johansson. The Swedish winger has been limited to just 48 games this season after playing in 29 last year due to injuries, but is up to 27 points in those 48 games this year. Finally healthy, Johansson should provide skill to the Bruins forward group, despite some bad blood with new teammate Brad Marchand.
Sweeney didn’t give up many assets in either of these trades, as he was able to keep his first-round pick in this year’s draft after sending last year’s to the New York Rangers for deadline rental Rick Nash.
In total, Sweeney sent away a second-round pick and a fifth-round pick in this year’s draft, along with a fourth-round pick in next year’s draft and forward Ryan Donato for both Coyle and Johansson, trades that should be viewed as victories for the general manager.
Loser – Montreal Canadiens
With the team sitting in a playoff spot heading into the trade deadline, many expected GM Marc Bergevin to make a move to improve the Canadiens’ roster heading into the season’s final stretch of games.
However, the general manager opted against making any major changes to his club’s roster, something fans of the team have grown accustomed to during his tenure as GM.
With 10 draft picks in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, including two second-round picks to go along with a strong prospect pool that includes standout forwards Ryan Poehling and Nick Suzuki, Bergevin decided to stand pat at the deadline.
Embed from Getty ImagesBergevin typically chooses not to go for rentals, with the last big name player joining Les Habitants this late in the season being Thomas Vanek bak in 2014. The GM is quoted saying “you make your team in June and July,” rather than going for a rental player at this time of the year and mortgaging the future.
And then Marc Bergevin rested. “You make your team in June and July,” he’s said on several occasions. Habs have 10 picks in the upcoming draft and several A prospects coming up through the ranks, and they’re currently in a playoff spot.
— Eric Engels (@EricEngels) February 25, 2019
With the Canadiens having a season many analysts didn’t predict happening, it wouldn’t have hurt the team to add and push for a playoff run after missing the playoffs twice in the last three seasons.
Other winners:
San Jose Sharks – Acquired forward Gustav Nyquist from Detroit without giving up a first-round pick or prospect.
Colorado Avalanche – Sneaky good move trading for forward Derick Brassard and a conditional 2020 sixth-round pick from Florida for a third-round pick in next year’s draft.
Vegas Golden Knights – Signed the biggest acquisition, forward Mark Stone, to an extension after acquiring him from the Ottawa Senators without giving up a first-round pick (although prospect Eric Brännström is projected to be an excellent NHL player in the future).
Other losers:
New York Islanders – Despite sitting in first in the Metropolitan Division, the Islanders could’ve used help up front as they sit in 23rd in the league in goals scored along with a power play that ranks 24th. GM Lou Lamoriello was reportedly involved in trade talks all day, but came away with nothing in the end. The team will get forward Andrew Ladd and defenseman Thomas Hickey back from injury, with both expected to play against Calgary Tuesday night.
Dallas Stars – The Stars made a big splash two days before the deadline, trading for playmaking forward Mats Zuccarello from the New York Rangers in exchange for two conditional draft picks. The problem? Zuccarello blocked a shot with his arm in his first game with Dallas and is out at least the next four weeks. With no Zuccarello, GM Jim Nill decided not to pursue a replacement for the team’s newly-acquired winger.
For a full list of trades throughout the league, you can find a trade tracker on NHL.com.
Loading ... Loading ...Stats courtesy hockey-reference.com, naturalstattrick.com, salary numbers courtesy capfriendly.com.
